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New method snips complex fibers into uniform particles

June 9, 2016

"An interdisciplinary team of researchers enabled by the National Science Foundation-funded Materials Research Science and Engineering Centers (MRSEC) program has developed a way to break fibers or sheets of material into many tiny, almost perfectly uniform segments or strips. The method can work on plastics, metals, glasses, and even natural materials such as silk or hair, producing sectioned particles ranging in size from nanoparticles to ones that can be handled and easily seen with the naked eye.

"In fact, the new method makes it possible to create nanoparticles — particles whose sizes are measured in billionths of a meter — using just a pen and a strip of plastic, the researchers say. More complex versions of the technique could lead to mass-produced high-tech optical and potentially electronic devices." - MIT News